Vroom Room

Good Morning!

A brisk minus 26 C First Friday of the month, its the Vroom Room, come in we have cappuccino and biscotti join the conversation. 

January is a done deal, in a few days we will see how the sales developed, although we heard comments of good, to acceptable, to slow...lets see in a few days. 

Our first review of the year the 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid.

Ever wonder how the Top 1% of Canadians which comprises 10% of tax payers is doing? Fascinating information from Statistic Canada take a moment to review.

Yes...we did get a cold snap in January. Yes its the CUE display from a Cadillac. It was interesting to experience cars under cold weather conditions. Perhaps we had forgotten how vehicles behave at minus 26C. Almost being surprised at how easy they start at these colder temperatures, compared to a few decades ago when starting a car at close to minus 30C could easily become a project. One thing that does not go away is the creaky plastic, and overall stiffness...some things never change.

Agreed...wearing an extra layer of clothes, actually using the down filled coat is useful under these crisp conditions.

We did a quick road trip with the Cadillac XTS, on some of the photos you can almost sense the cold in the air. In case you are wondering CUE does not work when wearing gloves under cold climatic conditions. Fascinating how the cold does not impact all the electronics in modern cars. Back in the day chokes would get stuck closed, not enough spark to start, and a myriad of other issues.

The results from RM Auctions Arizona Sale, as you know everyone descends to Phoenix in January to either buy or sell classic cars. Its always fascinating to see the actions, the judicious purchases and sales, as well as some memorable "brain fades".

A comprehensive photo gallery of the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Vroom Room

Good Morning!

Colonel Slade in Scent of a Woman said "If in doubt f..."Its Friday, its the Vroom Room, come in make yourself comfortable, yes we have cappuccino and biscotti.

For the past few days we have been delving in some auto industry nostalgia. It struck us how things change, and at times how things for some reason are quite similar.

If you missed the nostalgia entries, just scroll down.

In case you overlooked the Otis Maybach...here, its cool...enjoy!

Canadian sales were up 15% in January! A few weeks ago we were speculating Nich manufacturers held back on sales for 2011. Now we know, a classic case of I told you so...which also reinforces why we look at sales on a quarterly basis.

Last week end was the 50th Rolex 24 at Daytona, if it some point you have an opportunity to attend, its a memorable experience. Michael Shank Racing won in the DP class, and obvious a Porsche won the GT class. 

To continue our nostalgia theme of the past few days, some vintage photos Daytona 24 hour races...here.

Vroom Room

Good Morning!

Love is EmbeddedIts Friday, and yes its the Vroom Room, come in make yourself comfortable, join the conversation. As usual we have cappuccino and biscotti.

Think about this, we are already a month beyond Christmas, if you get the feeling that for some strange reason time seems to accelerate, we share your thoughts. Yes...time is increasingly becoming a precious commodity...its the great equalizer.

Yesterday we published a video titled "Auto Industry" its from almost 60 years ago, at a time when the auto industry literally powered North America, and the middle class. It was the "golden age" of the automobile in North America. The videos will continue tomorrow, and Sunday.

At some point we probably all knew that manufacturing was going to migrate to other places on the planet, all in the guise of lowering costs, in the meantime did we fully comprehend that the migration of manufacturing was going to alter the economic landscape in ways that perhaps not many envisaged. What do you think?

The Arizona auction weekend has come and gone...we don't know about you, in our case our interest in the various auctions has diluted. Prices seem more realistic, and obvious that with very low returns, accompanied by a stock market that constantly "tergiversates", classic cars are a good investment, or a better investment.

The upside, the auctions are a great tool/event to uphold the global classic car market.

Yes...tomorrow is the start of the Rolex 24 at Daytona, make it a point to catch it on TV or online, or on Twitter.

The World Economic Forum is on at Davos, as we have mentioned a few times there is a stark realisation that capitalism needs a global "reset"...

Perspectives and photos of the 1967 race at Daytona...here.